DATE: 12/5/05

CONTACT: Jen Collier (864) 650-6971; collie4@clemson.edu

WRITER: Pam Bryant (803) 553-7705; pbryant@clemson.edu

Clemson’s EcoVillage gives at-risk youth new perspectives on survival

AIKEN – Few youth in South Carolina have experienced, or can even imagine, life without the modern conveniences of electricity, computer and telecommunications technology and fast food.

However, at an eco village constructed on the grounds of Clemson University’s W.W. Long 4-H Leadership Center ( Camp Long) in Aiken, students learn to live a deliberate life, relying only on the essentials: food, water, shelter, fire and each other.

The Village at Crooked Branch is anything but modern living. Students at the Youth Development Center (YDC) at Camp Long, an alternative placement facility for non-violent juvenile offenders, take turns living on site at the eco village. There, they learn how to start and maintain a fire without matches, plan and prepare meals, purify water, and build temporary shelters. Daily chores are shared among group members, and a key goal is to limit impact on the natural environment.

Jen Collier, assistant direct of program support, says students consistently demonstrate a shift from focus on self to concern for the needs of the “community.”

“Students take on different roles and responsibilities to manage the community and survive. The eco village is an environment where trial and error leads to the practical application of acquired skills,” said Collier. “The result is a community environment where group camaraderie and selflessness is at the heart of the village, and students gain new respect for themselves and others.”

A favorite activity of students while living at The Village is hand crafting African drums. Gluing, rasping, sanding, and oiling are wood working skills learned and utilized by the students in the construction of the drum body. Assembly continues with students cutting out the head of the drum from a deer hide, which is then laced to the drum and left in the sun to dry.

The Village at Crooked Branch represents one of several unique, experiential learning programs developed by Clemson's Youth Learning Institute for the academic enrichment of youth at the YDC. Students also complete themed, academic modules each week that align with S.C. state educational standards.

The YDC is a partnership program between YLI and the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). The center is the first of its kind in South Carolina, established to house non-violent, determinately sentenced juveniles in a residential, camp-like setting, instead of an institutional setting.

To learn more about the eco village, contact Jen Collier at collie4@clemson.edu, or call (864) 878-1103.

END